Deck Builders In Melbourne
At New Era Landscapes, we build timber decks across Melbourne's south east. Merbau, spotted gum, blackbutt and treated pine, on a substructure built to drain and breathe underneath.
We're deck builders in Melbourne, and we build the deck and the yard it sits in. New Era Landscapes handles the stumps, the bearers, the joists and the boards, then the paving, steps and planting that meet it. Quotes are free and measured on site.
A deck is a floor you leave outside in the weather for twenty years. Everything that decides whether it's still flat and solid at the end of that is under the boards, where you'll never look at it again once we're finished.
Plenty of decking builders in Melbourne will quote you on boards and fixings. We'd rather talk to you about what's going underneath them first, because that's the half that fails.
What lasts
What Makes a Deck Last in Melbourne?
Air under it. A deck rots from below, not above, and it rots because moisture sits against timber that never gets a chance to dry. Give the underside airflow and a way for water to leave, and the boards on top become the easy part.
That's why we spend the money where you can't see it. Stumps set properly, bearers and joists sized for the span, a gap under the frame that air actually moves through, and ground beneath that sheds water instead of holding it. Termite protection goes in where structural timber sits close to the ground, which in Victoria is most decks.
Melbourne makes this matter more than a drier climate would. We get wet winters that keep the ground damp for weeks and summers hot enough to shrink boards that went down soaking. So we let the timber settle, set the gaps for the season we're laying in, and fix the boards so they can move without lifting.
The process
Our Deck Building Process
Every deck starts with the ground it's going over and the door it has to meet. From there it runs in three stages.
- Consultation and site assessment. We check the height off the ground, the fall, what the soil is doing and where the deck meets the house, and we tell you whether you need a permit.
- An itemised quote. The substructure, the boards and the finishing work are priced separately, so you can see what you're paying for the half you'll never see.
- Build and finish. Our own crew sets the stumps, frames it, lays and fixes the boards, then finishes the ground and the steps around it.
The timber
Timber Decking We Build With
Four timbers cover nearly every deck we're asked for, and you don't have to arrive knowing which one you want. Tell us where the deck goes and how much upkeep you're willing to do, and we'll tell you what suits.
As hardwood decking builders in Melbourne, most of what we lay is merbau. It's stable, it's available, it takes oil well and it suits almost any house, which is exactly why it became the default. The one thing to know is the tannin bleed in the first few weeks, because it will stain pale paving underneath if nobody washes it down.
Spotted gum and blackbutt are the step up, and the difference you'll notice is the grain rather than the lifespan. If you want the deck to be the thing people look at when they walk outside, that's where to spend. If you want a floor that does its job quietly, merbau or treated pine will do it.
| Timber | How it looks | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Merbau | Deep red-brown, fades to silver-grey if you let it. | The Melbourne default. Bleeds tannin for the first few rains, so it wants a wash down before anything goes under it. |
| Spotted gum | Warm browns with real variation board to board. | Australian hardwood, very hard wearing, and the one people pick when the deck is the feature rather than the floor. |
| Blackbutt | Pale, even, close to blonde. | Lighter underfoot in summer sun than the dark timbers, and it suits a modern render or weatherboard house. |
| Treated pine | Pale green when new, takes stain well. | The budget option, and an honest one. Softer, so it marks more easily, but on a low deck under a pergola it does the job for years. |
Why New Era
Choosing New Era Landscapes for Your Deck
We bring over 10 years of experience in landscaping and turf work across Melbourne, and decks have been part of it throughout. A deck almost never turns up on its own.
That's the practical difference between us and most deck builders in Melbourne. The steps down off it, the paving that meets it, the drainage that takes water away from under it and the lawn that runs up to it are all done by our own crew, on the same quote. You're not the one standing in the middle trying to get a carpenter and a landscaper to agree on a level.
We'll tell you up front which parts of your job need a permit, including when the answer adds weeks. You'll get that before you commit, not after.
Quotes are free, measured on site and itemised, with no obligation. You can see the work on Instagram, where we post jobs as they finish.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to build a deck in Melbourne?
Often, yes. A deck attached to the house generally needs a building permit whatever its height, and a freestanding one needs a permit once it's more than eight hundred millimetres above natural ground level. Proximity to a boundary can pull one in as well. We'll tell you which side of that line your deck falls on before you commit to anything.
Source: Building Regulations 2018 (Vic).
How much does decking cost in Melbourne?
The timber is the part people ask about and it's rarely the part that moves the number most. What's under the deck does: how far off the ground it sits, whether it needs stumps or can sit on a slab, and whether the ground under it drains. Quotes are free, measured on site and itemised, so you can see the substructure and the boards priced separately.
What's the best timber for a deck in Melbourne?
Merbau if you want the standard that suits most houses, spotted gum or blackbutt if you want an Australian hardwood with more character, and treated pine if the budget matters more than the finish. All of them last well in Melbourne's climate when the deck underneath is built to breathe.
How long does a deck take to build?
Most domestic decks are a week or two on site once we start. What stretches the timeline is a permit, because the paperwork runs on its own clock, and wet weather during the stump and bearer stage.
How much maintenance does a timber deck need?
A wash and a re-oil once a year keeps the colour. Skip the oil and the boards go silver-grey, which plenty of people prefer and which does the timber no structural harm. What actually shortens a deck's life is trapped moisture underneath, not the finish on top.
Areas We Serve Across Melbourne
We're based in Melbourne's south east and we work right across the city. There's no shopfront to visit, so we come to you and quote the deck standing where it's going.
If you've been looking for deck builders in Melbourne's eastern suburbs or anywhere south east of the city, there's a good chance we're already working close by. You'll find us regularly in Brighton, Berwick, Frankston, Cranbourne, Glen Waverley, Cheltenham, Narre Warren, Pakenham, Dandenong, Bentleigh, Beaumaris, Mentone, Mordialloc, Hampton.
Not on that list? Call and ask. We cover most of Melbourne, and you'll get a straight answer either way.
Written by Jono O'Brien, who runs New Era Landscapes and has been in landscaping and turf renovation for over ten years. You can talk to him directly about your yard.
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